A federal grand jury in Minnesota returned indictments against 10 individuals described by the Justice Department as “foreign nationals” on allegations tied to illegal voting and false claims of U.S. citizenship, according to Headline USA’s report of DOJ statements. The DOJ said the indictments were returned Sept. 24 and that the defendants have made initial court appearances.
What DOJ says happened
According to the DOJ, the cases allege that some defendants voted in U.S. elections over the past four years despite not being citizens, and others allegedly claimed to be U.S. citizens in order to register. Headline USA reported that not all of the defendants are said to have voted in federal elections.
In a DOJ post on Sept. 30, 2026, Attorney General Todd Blanche said, “Today’s charges allege that ten foreign nationals committed voter fraud in Minnesota, one voting illegally as recently as this August’s primary.” Blanche also stated, “The law is clear, only American citizens may vote in American elections, and enforcing this law is fundamental to our democracy… That should not be a partisan concept,” per the source.
Who was charged
Per Headline USA’s summary of DOJ information, the defendants are:
- Bhator Konah Bryant, 61, Liberian national (allegedly registered to vote on Oct. 18, 2024)
- Edvile Vaidoto Edmunds, 59, Lithuanian national
- Joshua Frederick Kofi Edzie, 63, Ghanaian national
- Alan Barbu Kargbo, 48, Liberian national
- Chris Adam Pettiquoi, 43, Liberian national
- Paul Kras, 78, German national
- Fadil Rasim Ozegovic, 58, Bosnian national
- Aparecido Donizetti Padovan, 62, Brazilian national
- Christian Liam Schenk, 47, Canadian national
- Hester Sophia Weihmann, 69, South African national
Headline USA wrote that one individual allegedly voted as recently as the Aug. 11, 2026 primary.
The charges and possible penalties
The source reports that defendants face charges including making a false claim of U.S. citizenship in order to vote and “voting by alien.” If convicted of falsely claiming U.S. citizenship to vote, each defendant faces a maximum of five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine up to $250,000, according to the DOJ as cited by the outlet. The DOJ also states that “voting by aliens” is a Class A misdemeanor carrying a maximum of one year in prison and a $100,000 fine.
Officials’ statements
Attorney General Todd Blanche said enforcing the citizenship requirement for voting is “fundamental to our democracy,” per Headline USA’s account of DOJ statements. DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin said the department assisted in the case and added, “Under President Trump’s leadership, this administration will never allow the votes of American citizens to be cancelled out by non-citizens illegally voting in our elections… Only American citizens should be electing American leaders,” according to the source.
U.S. Attorney Daniel N. Rosen is leading the cases, per the report.
What’s not clear
Headline USA noted that, based on DOJ descriptions, the individuals appeared to be lawful permanent residents. That characterization is the outlet’s assessment; the DOJ descriptions quoted in the source do not explicitly state immigration status beyond “foreign nationals.”
